TV Reviews

‘True Detective’ Season 2, Episode 4 – Down Will Come | TV Review

Now audiences have reached the heart of the second series, the fourth episode of True Detective indicates how the show is nearing the sizzling intensity that part-time audiences and admittedly even some full-timers are searching for.

The investigation into Ben Caspere’s death and further divulgence of the flawed identities continues – a persisting routine. Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell) and Ani Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams) track Caspere’s last known movements before his murder – both now seem to be under fire by their superiors now. Paul Woodrugh (Taylor Kitsch) awakes in the bed of the war buddy he was previously sleeping with; reluctant to accept and heavily in denial about his sexuality, he flees the apartment and helps his partners with the investigation.

Finally, Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn) attempts to rebuild his empire, resigning former businesses and labelling his name on narcotics that traffic around California – essentially reentering the criminal underworld he tried so desperate to escape from, as aforementioned previously.

The episode, like many of this second series, does become somewhat confusing for a variety of reasons that mainly revolve around how the show examines its four protagonists. It is not so much that there is a failure to understand the plot, but more to do with how audiences are pumped with content not only related to the protagonists, but about the actual mystery also, which is arguably the monumental aspect of the TV show.

Basically, it is not a perplexing series nor is it incomprehensive, there is simply too much being pumped into the viewer’s head episode by episode – one scene a character’s decision is being assessed, then in the next Velcoro, Bezzerides and Woodrugh’s next lead must be closely followed in order to keep up, and then there is Semyon who filters into the equation also.

But then to many’s relief, this is when the episode abruptly erupts. The detectives lead a group of armed officers on a raid and are instantly severely ambushed by a gang running a methamphetamine lab, leading to heavy casualties – a scene both jaw-dropping and exciting, which will certainly make the episode for some. It then closes with the detectives left horrified, and despite the perhaps hazy script for this episode, or maybe series in general so far, the closing sequence was what forcefully patient fans of the first series were waiting for and it will be worth seeing just for that.